7/17 We have turned yet another corner in Iraq!
http://www.csua.org/u/ggm
\_ 50 people died today but we're spreading LIBERY FREEDOM AND THE
PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS in Iraq! -jblack #2 fan
\_ We're running out of Iraqi corners
\_ We're just circling the same damn block.
\_ We should build cities with hexagonal blocks. 50% more
corners for the same price!
\_ Not octagons, though. The government would get sued by
UFC.
\_ Can one fill a surface with octagons?
\_ Not in Euclidean or spherical geometry. You can
do it in the hyperbolic plane, see e.g
http://www.geom.uiuc.edu/apps/teich-nav/report/node1.html
Some of Escher's designs were based on this sort
of pattern.
\_ Wow! Thx.
\_ What if they were all round? Is that no corners or
infinite corners?
\_ I'd think of it as infinite corners. But you can't fill
a surface with round shapes.
\- if we think about this in terms of
differentiability i think it is
better to think of round as "no corners".
You may enjoy reading about
THE WEIERSTRASS FUNCTION. --psb
\- if we think about this in terms of differentiability
i think it's better to think of round as no corners.
You may enjoy reading about THE WEIERSTRASS FUNCTION.
I suppose you can also read about LOCAL LINEARITY.
BTW, there are some pretty counter intuitive stuff
in this area [space filling sets and covers]. For a
Berkeley connection, you may
google(dubins, hirsch, scissor) also see
google(dubins, hirsch, scissor) also see e.g.
http://sciboard.louisville.edu/math.html#q12 --psb
\_ Interesting. I was thinking in terms of
circumference and area, which approach 2*pi*r and
pi*r^2 as N approaches infinity. So do the two
ways of thinking contradict to each other? I'm
not a math major. -- PP
ways of thinking contradict each other? I'm
not a math major and I'm only good at high school
math. -- PP

7/18 Hey Chicom, are you in on this? It would explain a lot.
http://www.asiamedia.ucla.edu/article.asp?parentid=24609
\_ I happened to value freedom of speech, probably value it more
than you do because I have experienced those things.
I do curious, though. Putin has done a lot more harming the
freedom of speech but why no US media ever bitch about it?
\_ Because he's not a commie.
\_ Our government has.
\_ I've read many articles and editorials about this in the
mainstream US media. As with many issues that people
whine about not being reported fairly, can you show me
evidence that the US media is biased in favor of Putin?

7/18 No free evacuations for Americans from Lebanon, alive or dead
http://www.tpmmuckraker.com/archives/001155.php
\_ People should be SELF-RELIANT and be responsible for their own
fate. -SELF-RELIANT Conservative.
\_ So, uh, apart from like actual government employees, why is it the
US taxpayer's responsibility to pay for other private citizens'
evacuations?
\_ Because we don't utterly suck ass? yet?
\_ Too late for that.
\_ tOO LATE for that.
\_ Because we're a nation of _citizens_, not just taxpayers.
We're a community.
\_ I thought we were all "consumers"
\_ That's all we will be if we continue to let
corporations and conservatives run everything.
\_ That sounds warm and fuzzy, but why don't the individual
states that the people are residents of pay? Too small?
Why don't we pay to evacuate everyone (including
non-US-citizens)? There's an infinite number of things that
the government isn't really responsible for that it _could_
spend money on; I don't see why this is arbitrarily one of
them that people feel we should.
\_ It's under the umbrella of foreign policy and national
security. Those Americans are to be protected in the
same way as if they were being attacked on US soil.
\_ Well by going to the middle east they knew they were putting
themselves in harm's way. It's not like the government is telling
people without airfare "too bad, you're stuck", just that they have
to agree to cover the cost of their evacuation. I fail to see how
this is much different than billing people evacuated from outdoor
sporting mishaps.
\_ That's how I felt.. It's sort of how if it's a little disaster,
you're boned if you don't have insurance, but if it's a big
enough deal, FEMA will send you a check.
\_ You're quite often boned if you _have_ insurance.
\_ Great point. We should also start charging people for police
time when they get shot in a bad neighborhood, since it's
totally their own fault.
\_ The police time isn't for their benefit, if they've already
been shot. The medical time is, and guess what, we don't
pay for that.
\_ "The police time isn't for their benefit"? WTF? Just
admit that your argument is BS.
\_ Most of the responses to this post are both predictable and
depressing. We've gone from putting men on the moon to this in
only 40 years?
\_ What does landing on the moon have anything to do with
this entire discussion?
\_ Was the MOTD thread 40 years ago about putting men on the moon
more inspiring?
\_ I propose we put the men of MOTD on the moon, or at least
host SODA on the moon.
\_ People would complain about the latency.
\_ MOTD 40 years ago was a cork message board, which made it
much easier to put up drawings of penises.
\_ 8===========>

7/18 The magnet for my bicycle cyclo/speedometer has fallen off.
Where can I get new ones without buying a new computer? Thanks.
\_ A bike store can order you the part. It won't be cheap. -tom
\_ If you're not in a hurry, you can buy it from Cateye. Look for
small parts on their web site. A wheel magnet is cateye part
number 169-9691. I picked up a bunch of them the last time I
bought wiring harnesses. I think they were only $1-$2, and
Cateye has never charged me shipping for small parts like this.
The last time I bought the same thing from a bike store, they
charged me $8. It doesn't make any difference whether or not
Cateye made your computer; you just need a magnet that attaches
to your spokes.

7/18 When did Hezbullah suddenly become Hizbullah?
\_ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hizbollah#_note-0
"Hezbollah is predominantly used by American media, such as CNN,
Fox News and The New York Times, as well as by the BBC and The
Times in the UK, but the organization itself alternatively
transliterates its name as Hizbollah or Hizbullah."
\_ I thought it's called "Party of (true) God."
Just as sometimes I call al Qaeda "Foundation."

7/18 Racist polls. Which ethnicity/race/people love money the most?
-Chinese: .
-Jew: .
-Swiss: .
\_ If we loved money so much, we wouldn't be so damn bad
at business. -John
\_ We as in Swiss or Jew? You are a Jew aren't you?
\_ Awesome, I never knew. Hmm. -John
-Nigerians:
\_ Jewish ethnic Chinese living in Nigeria
\_ Is there such a thing as Jewish Chinese or Chinese Jew?
\_ Why not? Just like there are many Chinese Muslims in China,
and many Chinese Christians and Chinese Catholics in Hong
Kong.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Jews_in_China
\_ So they have the best of both ethnicity, where they're
super rich and super stingy?
-English: .
\_ Remembering how my former classmate who was a Chinese FOB seemed
to worry mostly about what else she could possibly do in her spare
time to make even MORE money despite the fact she already had a
well-paying 60hr/week programming job, $0 debt, and that her living
expenses were not much higher than those of a typical UCB student,
I'd say Chinese.
\_ Who has all the old money in the world? How do you think
they got it, by not caring about money? WASP's love to complain
about how everyone else are only interested in money, while
they seem to have all of it. It is a subtle form of putting
down the nuevo riche.

7/16 Dear self righteous German John. I challenge you a game. I will
learn enough English and graduate from America's top public
\_ "to graduate"
\_ "to be graduated"
university, you and you will learn enough east asian language to
\_ superfluous "you"
graduate from any sub-tier university. May the best man win.
\_ Congrats on your accomplishment. John's point that you
should sharpen your English skills because it'll enhance
your success in the real world is valid, though. Face it,
just as in the motd, the real world is full of assholes
who'll judge you on your language skills. --PeterM

7/18 John may be an idiot but I enjoy trolling him. Thank God for stupid
people like him who provide hours of free entertainment. Heil.
\_ i liked the swedish chef version better
\_ The troll farm flourishes! Troll-Gro worked! Awesome. -John
\_ Your chicom troll pen has really blossomed into a best-in-show
gallery! Very impressive!

7/18 http://www.commutercars.com
Ultra narrow car that'll increase capacity by as much as 2X!
(ob rollover and lawsuit discussions below)
\_ 0-60 in 4sec!
\_ what does the "(ob rollover ...)" line mean?
\_ ob = obligatory
\_ 0-60 in 4sec! 1000 lb-ft torque!
\_ ...it won't roll over, it's got heavy-ass batteries on the bottom
read the site. they're getting a patent for the wildly novel
concept of using batteries as ballast.
\_ Did they take into account the upward shift of the CG when the
vehicle is driven by the average fat-ass American?
\_ The vehicle weighs an amazing 3000 pounds (is that a typo?)
even the fattest American won't affect it much.
\_ 3000lb with no regenerative brakes. This vehicle is not
going to be very energy efficent.
\_ http://www.commutercars.com/features100.php
claims 2200lbs and regenerative brakes. The T600 is
their like "race car for rich people" version. Also,
electric motors are much more efficient than IC or
Diesel. This is why gas + fuel cell + electric
motors is almost a win.
\_ I didn't realize there are more than one model
until now! Gee, the web pages are confusing.

7/18 "The U.S. government says it has evacuated more than 100 Americans,
but their efforts are clearly lagging behind those of other countries.
The French and Italians have gotten hundreds of their citizens out."
Clearly, cheese eating surrender monkeys are better at ESCAPING!
http://www.cnn.com/CNN/Programs/anderson.cooper.360/blog

7/18 Afghanistan to re-form virtues ministry
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060718/ap_on_re_as/afghan_virtues_ministry
\_ GOD DAMN IT I hate this fucking planet. Why must people be such
fucking morons? How on earth in Afghanistan is this a priority?
Of course the US won't say "get your head out of your ass and do
something important" because half the fucking US probably wishes we
would move on something like this domestically.

7/18 Breaking News: Seeing how unpopular it is to charge evacuation
fees which will affect the November election, two Republican senaators
tell CNN that the fees will be waived. So much for preaching
"self-reliance" and "you're responsible for your own lives."
\_ Oopsiedoodle!
\_ Of course they do. We're in the era of "borrow and spend"
social-but-not-economic conservatism.

7/18 6000 Iraqis killed in sectarian fighting in May and June, approximately
100 a day. Six thousand deaths in two months, in a country of
26 million residents, is the equivalent of 9/11 every two and a half
days.
http://www.uniraq.org/documents/HR%20Report%20May%20Jun%202006%20EN.pdf
\_ But we're spreading freedom!
\_ That will all stop once we turn the corner. Just wait!
\_ Maybe they should stop fighting each other then. If you need a
totalitarian police state to prevent your citizens from butchering
each other then something is wrong with your culture.
\_ Sooo I guess that's "oopsiedoodle" on the whole Iraq thing then.
\_ Saddam used biological weapons on his own people!
... maybe we should use some on them too!
\_ ob we're fighting them there so we don't fight them here.
ob if you disagree, you're giving aid and comfort to the enemy
and not supporting the troops
ob mushroom cloud over major american city
\_ so long as the right people are dying what's the problem?
If it is truely innocent civilians very very sad.

7/18 If you hike in some park, fell, and broke your leg or something,
and had to be rescued, are 'they' gonna send you a big bill?
What if some criminal chase after you with a gun and shot you?
I assume the police won't send you a bill. What about the fire
department?
\_ Actually that might not be true. For instance a small chunk
of park entry fees may go into a "rescue fund".
\_ Who is 'they'? You would definitely get billed for the ambulance
or helicopter medical evac. If you had health insurance, it would
probably cover some or all of this. -dans
\_ The question of who pays for wilderness rescue remains a matter
of some debate, but a good place to start is 42 U.S.C. 1395dd, aka
EMTALA, the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act
http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/42/1395dd.html
--Jon

7/18 GOOG will go up to 850 next summer and deflate back
to 750 before winter. -motd stock oracle
\_ Why?
(ObWhere'sShortGOOGAt100/200/300 Guy?) -tom
\_ If you try to reason why stock market is the way it is, you'll
never catch the wave. The reason why it'll go up to 850 has
nothing to do with any reasoning except for expected human
irrationality. -pp, hope to win the stock prediction award
\_ *boggle* holy shit, that's stupid.

7/18 So, we call that guy a "chicom", but isn't that sort of a misnomer?
Isn't chinese communism extinct, just like communism everywhere
in the world except Cuba? I mean, with all the market reforms
in China, haven't the leadership admitted, in essense, that
communism doesn't work, that the market does, and that they're
retaining political control nakedly just for the sake of
holding power? And so, shouldn't we rename "chicom troll"
after some abbreviation of "Chinese totalitarian governmental
pawn" instead?
\_ How 'bout: Chipotle?
\_ I started using chicom because it's so absurdly anachronistic
(like half of his rants.) I think heil cherman john guy left
because I didn't have a good name for him. I think every good
troll breeder should know his trolls by good names, so feel free
to suggest. -John

7/17 http://www.lcurve.org
The L Curve.
\_ That's a lot more alarmist than a simple Gini curve, and I'm not
sure it's as educational.
\- i think they illustrate different things. for example the
gini curve [sic ... you mean gini coef and lorenz curve]
may say something about the fallout from a tax law change
or maybe even something like school vouchers or other cases
where you may think in terms of income bands, but if you
want to talk about say money and politics [free speech and
elections per Buckley v Vallejo, political contributions,
campaign spending per huffington, corzine, bloomberg etc] then
maybe it makes sense to talk about super-rich individuals.
i assume you also realize the gini coef with wide bands
will be lower than the GC for the same distribution chopped
into narrower bands. there are a lot of problems with the
"educational" gini coef. i think this example is just something
to keep in mind when we talk about the "american metritrocracy"
or "death taxes" [aka "the billionare tax"] and obviously not
intended for econometrics calculations or macroeconomic
comparasions of economies at different points in time or
in different countries. --psb

7/18 http://www.cnn.com/CNN/Programs/anderson.cooper.360/blog
The American government is very financially saavy. By cutting
unnecessary fat, we save a lot of money to pay for our deficit.
\_ After 10 years of Republican control, there is no more fat to cut,
government is as lean is it can possibly be!